14th April - Amersham pre-Fridays tour ride - 66 miles

[GrumpyGregry]

How long is a piece of string?

On my own (apart from the middle section when I joined Dodo's gang), and returning by a slightly different route, and with two stops rather than three, but going about the right distance over about the right terrain, I was out between 10:15 and 16:30 for five hours of riding. And I'm no racing snake.

I'd guess that if we manage to set off by 9:45 and are reasonably disciplined about faffing and lucky with mechanicals we could easily expect to be back by 18:00. But it's light until gone 19:00.

There are pubs in Amersham for post-ride refreshment.

For a local-road route from London Bridge to Marylebone, if you've got one of Mr Garmin's excellent wayfaring devices, drop me a line and I'll wing you the conventional commuting route via Bloomsbury.

something for one of mr garmins finest, if somewhat retro, Etrex HCx units would be splendid. LB appeals as it is one less change on the way up.

my concern re finish time is merely because it is a three hour rail-bike-rail journey to get home.

 

[redflightuk]

Another possible here. I'll be riding down to Amersham and then i'll peel off at Cheddington and head off through the lanes back to Knebworth.

 

[srw]

Possibles, for at least part of the time:
srw & mrs srw in stately array
User13710
martint325
CharlieB
IanMac62 for some of the time as part of a big loop down from Northampton
RebeccaOlds
Mice
ceepeebee
Flying Dodo
lilolee
Greg Collins
gbs
ianrauk
dellzeqq & Susie
redflightuk
Ann from the choir

That's 18 16 so far. I'll include you all in a PM next week with my phone number in case you want to get in touch. As a last-minute, it'll all work out in the end, sort of chap I'm not planning on pre-booking stops - if that makes any obsessive planners really uncomfortable please yell.

My thoughts on refreshments:
Waddesdon Nursery for morning coffee - part of the Rothschild estate, and quite used to hosting the South Bucks CTC according to their ride list.
http://www.streetmap.co.uk/map.srf?X=473516&Y=217013&A=Y&Z=115
There are also pubs and shops in the village.

Winslow for lunch - a historic brick-built town (the last stop before Buckingham on the road out of London back in the day) with a choice of shops, pubs and cafes
http://www.streetmap.co.uk/map.srf?X=476500&Y=227500&A=Y&Z=120

The cafe in the woods, Wendover Woods for afternoon tea - at the top of the final climb, and very close to the highest point in the Chilterns. There's a chance the bluebells will be showing by then.
http://www.cafeinthewoods.co.uk/

All we need now is last week's weather rather than today's.

 

[ianrauk]

Sorry, can you take myself and Martint235 off the list.
We both are needed for a recce.

 

[srw]

something for one of mr garmins finest, if somewhat retro, Etrex HCx units would be splendid. LB appeals as it is one less change on the way up.

http://www.mapmyride.com/routes/view/63433882

That's a mapmyride page from which a GPX should be extractable - it goes both ways between Marylebone and Gracechurch Street. From London Bridge you'd want to go down King William St to Bank, and Lombard St is currently being dug up anyway.

 

[srw]

Sorry, can you take myself and Martint235 off the list.
We both are needed for a recce.

No problem.

 

[gbs]

DENHAM ROUNDABOUT: moton madness or safe for cyclists?

I am still thinking about riding out to the meeting point but this roundabout with feeders from the M40 and A412 dual carrigeway looks daunting. Any experience? Please tell.

 

[srw]

It's OK. It's a magic roundabout - several small roundabouts, mostly controlled by lights. The only one that isn't is the A412/M40 feeder one - but at that point the A412 is just emerging from a 30mph zone. Traffic from the M40 E-bound is slowed by a traffic light.

There is a complete infrastructure of footpaths and footbridges with ramps if you'd rather.

 

[gbs]

It's OK. It's a magic roundabout - several small roundabouts, mostly controlled by lights. The only one that isn't is the A412/M40 feeder one - but at that point the A412 is just emerging from a 30mph zone. Traffic from the M40 E-bound is slowed by a traffic light.

There is a complete infrastructure of footpaths and footbridges with ramps if you'd rather.

Thanks, I will take a magic ride.

 

[gbs]

Sorry to say but IT problems in my home office will require me to be at home on Saturday. Enjoy the day everybody.

 

[redflightuk]

Route to Amersham sorted, route home from Cheddington sorted. Weather is looking good for saturday so see you all at the station.

 

[CharlieB]

I'll be in Caffè Nero (200m up the road from the station, right on the mini-rab, and 100m on the left) at 8:45 for pre-ride coffee and panini if anyone wants to join me…

 

[CharlieB]

…and we'll all enjoy the road surface 1½ miles in as we head down Copperkins Lane. It goes CLUNK CLUNK CLUNK very regularly for about ½ a mile.
What the hell is wrong with that road that it has this regular deep groove across it all the way to the t-junction at the end?

 

[srw]

It's cheap and crappy Buckinghamshire tarmac over a cheap and crappy Buckinghamshire concrete base. I suspect the concrete was laid badly in sections and is starting to fail, so the tarmac over the top is also failing - badly in places. There's one particularly nasty pothole.

 

[topcat1]

hope i'm not too late, may i join you?